Guyana recognised by CFATF for anti-money laundering effort

…leads regional study on financial vulnerabilities

Guyana was able to gain plaudits for its work on an assessment of Money Laundering Vulnerabilities in a Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) study, on the occasion of the 60th Plenary being held in Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) from May 25 to 30.
The Guyanese delegation is being led by Attorney General Anil Nandlall, SC. According to a statement from the AG chambers, Guyana was formally recognized at the recent CFATF Risk Trends and Methods Group (CRTMG) for its contributions to the study.
According to the statement, “Money Laundering Vulnerabilities in the Financial Arrangements of Non-Traditional Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs)”, were examined in the survey.
Guyana was represented during the case study by Rajni Boodhoo Moore of the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA). Meanwhile, Guyana will be reporting on its own anti-money laundering progress at the 61st CFATF Plenary, scheduled to be held in Barbados in the fourth quarter of 2025.
At the current plenary, Nandlall stressed the need for strong enforcement of the law and increased conviction rate, also noting the importance of training especially for the judiciary, on the AML/CFT/CPF framework.
“This legislative reality is not yet fully appreciated by those charged with the responsibility of interpreting and applying it. Not surprisingly, almost every country in the Caribbean suffers from the identified deficiency of a low conviction rate coupled with grave difficulty in securing appropriate orders under the legislation.”
“So, one may have strong investigations and robust prosecutions, but fail to secure the desired results, because of a tribunal’s approach, interpretation and application of the relevant legislation,” the AG said.
One of his recommendations was that Judges from other jurisdictions with high conviction rates be brought in to oversee training, such as from the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and the United States.
The CFATF Plenary, held biannually, brings together member states to discuss key issues related to anti-money laundering, countering the financing of terrorism, and counter-proliferation financing (AML/CFT/CPF).
The sessions include both Working Group and Plenary Meetings and are aimed at fostering international cooperation and compliance with global financial standards. The current Chair of the CFATF is Jamaica’s Minister of Finance and Public Service, Fayval Williams.
It was meanwhile also announced that Guyana’s Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions, Diana O’Brien, was appointed by the CFATF to serve as a Legal Assessor for the mutual evaluation of Curaçao.
“This marks a significant milestone, as these are the final two jurisdictions to be evaluated under the Fourth Round of Assessments. The Plenary will also review follow-up reports from Grenada and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The Fifth Round of Mutual Evaluations will begin in 2026, with Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica scheduled for assessment,” the AG chambers also said.
Guyana’s fourth round Mutual Evaluation that was done between 2022 and 2024, with anti-money laundering experts spending time in Guyana and investigating the state of Guyana’s Anti-Money Laundering/Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) framework.
The country had received plaudits last year for the strides it had taken in its Anti-Money Laundering/Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) compliance, which was recognized by CFATF during its on-site visits.